CH 1.09

CHAPTER 1: THE SUPPORTING ROLE IS ALSO QUITE DIFFICULT (IX)

Part 010

Inside the carriage, she kicked the blanket, no, kicked the dress. No matter how you think about it, that was a three-year blanket kick angle. It’s embarrassing to have your dress burst in front of anyone… And that, of course, in front of Duke Bigor. She reflected on herself for swearing at him for rejecting Ailene.

What would have happened if he had ignored her and left? She almost had to be stuck on the terrace, stranded and waiting for the announcement of the missing daughter. She thought he was a scary person, but he was more normal than she thought, right? Besides, he looked pretty good when he smiled.

It was the first time I had seen the mark of royalty up close, like a soldier’s short black hair that faded under the light and bright red eyes. It was beautiful. And then-

“Puha.”

The name of the dress? What was a girlish idea coming from that face?

“Puhahaha.”

The dress exploded again. As soon as it exploded, she was scattered across the wagon. She kept straining her back, and her whole body was tired. A gust of wind blew through her side. Ah, she was going to get scolded by Jenny. She didn’t want to go home.

Sure enough, as soon as she saw her grabbing her side and getting off the carriage, Jenny put her hand on her forehead and jumped backwards. Embraced by Anna who supported her, she even muttered sadly, “I have to go… I have to go to the cherry trees…”

“I wasn’t caught! No one knows! I managed to get it right. This happened while I was relaxing in the carriage earlier. It only exploded a little in the banquet hall.”

“You didn’t get caught? How can you not get caught when your side is like that?”

“Someone helped me cover it up and get out.”

“You said no one knew!”

“Ah… it’s fine. He’s not the kind of person who would spread rumors.”

Jenny looked at her without saying a word and sighed with a face that gave up on the world. She pressed her temples and spoke as if to soothe her.

“Anyway, you’ve worked hard, Miss. Did anything else happen?”

“Yeah, I’ve been fine. No one really knows about the dress. Oh, nobody knows except for that one person”

When she emphasized it once more, Jenny raised her eyebrows and smiled. Even though she dresses tight, Jenny was a family member who always stands by her like her mother and older sister.

“Okay. I have a lot to prepare for tomorrow, so go up and take a rest. I’ll bring something to eat.”

“Yes.”

As she hurriedly moved on, Jennie asked in a raspy voice.

“Are you going to wear a corset tomorrow?”

“Yes. I have to. I will definitely do it, corset.”

As soon as she washed and changed into a chemise, Lootvan came in and asked what was going on. After explaining her circumstances, he grabbed his head in the same pose as Jenny.

“It’s good that it wasn’t a big deal though. Father thought that you suddenly became ill and the Duke helped you, so try to match your words.”

“Yes, brother. I’m sorry for worrying you.”

“No. I’m saying this for you, Damian. If you’re dating, your brother wants someone more kind and gentle for you.”

“My brother is too much. Aren’t I taking an exam for the next season? When it comes to dating, where am I in the mood to do that?”

“Isn’t it? You’re still young, no, you’re coming of age soon. You’re getting close to dating and getting married. When did you grow up like this?”

Rootvan tapped lightly on the top of her head. Most of her brother’s complicated-looking heart was concerned and affection for her, so she laughed happily. As soon as she drank the warm soup Jenny brought her, she fall asleep and crawled into bed. The moment she was about to fall asleep after kicking the blanket, sheI jumped up. 

‘All I had to do was call Ludvan!’

My brain must have rotted after memorizing only the genealogy of the royal family for an entire season. Instead of asking for an arm, she should have asked for Rootvan. It’s not something that would happen after only 3 years. That was a situation where sh had to wear a blanket steadily for at least 5 years.

She bit the hem of the blanket and lay down again. After putting on the blanket with sincerity for a long time, She comforted herself and fell asleep, wondering if it would be appropriate for Duke Bigor to run errands.

* * *

The morning of the second day of the New Year’s banquet, Jenny gave her soup and bread. So yes, she was too hungry today. She was really going to die, because, yeah, people needed food to live.

As promised, she wore a corset. Knowing how much she hated being cramped, the good lady-in-waiting, Jenny, tightened her corset only slightly and put her dress on. Today was a scarlet dress. Compared to yesterday’s cream-colored dress, the color and design were quite mature. Her exposure was only slightly below her collarbones, but her hair was pulled up in a few strands, leaving her neckline cool.

It was really beautiful.

Jenny, who was tidying up the end of the dress, laughed as well as she hummed in front of the mirror. Today, she was not hungry, she did not have to strain her stomach, there were kind people who had decided to dance with her, and it was a wonderful night. Or that was telling her to herself.

On the second and third days, no names were called when entering. The king and queen said they would not attend for quite some time. It was only on the first day that she had to show her face, so she decided to attend until today and go back to study mode from tomorrow. As soon as Rootban, who had entered with her, escorted her among the young people her age, he disappeared into a young girl.

Would spring come to her brother too? She gave a quiet fight to his back, which looked good. Yesterday, to the young ladies who asked about the affair with Duke Bigor, she covered up what he said with Rootban. She ran into the Duke on the terrace where he entered because he was in a bad mood, and he only escorted her to the carriage when she was having a hard time. Not wanting to glance at Ailene, she tried to avoid her seat, but Ailene approached holding Docern’s hand.

No, what happened overnight? Ailene and the second prince were together?

She was even more surprised that the two of them greeting the young lady and her group were so friendly and got along well. Was the genre a new wave of Romeo and Juliet? Was she okay?

When she asked with her eyes, Ailene nodded with a happy face. As she pointed out, she went to the terrace where the dress broke yesterday and waited. Eilene and Dozern appeared together.

“I salute the 2nd Prince.”

She hurriedly got up and bowed her head, and Dozern greeted her with a smile.

“You don’t have to be that formal, Lady Ethard. I just came to say hello as Ailene’s close friend.”

“It’s an honor, my lord.”

“I look forward to meeting you again in a convenient place next time. You can talk comfortably.”

“Yes, my lord.”

“You can call me Dozern.”

Dozern laughed and lightly tapped the tip of Ailene’s nose with his finger, and Ailene laughed along. The 2nd prince bowed lightly to her and pulled back the curtains and went out. She managed to find the missing jaw and put it in.

“Eh?”

“That’s it.”

“What happens… when that happens? In one day.”

“I said I was looking for a suitable partner.”

Here’s a kid who can do anything. If it’s the right opponent, was it the right opponent? In any case, since he was a member of the royal family, Duke Nodoban would not be able to openly show his dislike.

“Are you okay? Didn’t you just had problems with your family and the crown prince?”

“You should have seen my father’s face yesterday.”

Ailene laughed again, wondering what she was so excited about.

“Didn’t you just get scolded?”

“Yesterday, Tyrellius said that he would break the engagement. Then Dozern escorted me to the carriage. My father hasn’t said anything so far. Well, it’s good that everyone is well, isn’t that right? It doesn’t mean that Tyrellius won’t be king just because I’m marrying another man, right?”

Was it like that? Wasn’t her father trying to put her on the throne, or something like that? In historical dramas, that’s what maternal relatives wanted to do usually.

She had been memorizing the royal family lineage and the struggle for the throne for the past 400 years, but it’s dark about the current situation. If she wanted to work as an administrator, she needed to know a little about this.

“I’m glad Duke Nodovan didn’t say anything. He looked good. He looked as if he had honey flowing from his eyes.”

“He had loved me for a long time. Because he treats me so kindly, I feel like I never being loved before. It was so frustrating to suddenly fall into this world, but I think I can live well if I am with him. I want to get married as soon as possible.”

“What? You’re talking about marriage already?”

“What are you talking about? We are considered old maidens when we turn 20 here.”

“Anyway, it’s not too fast. I’m a little worried that the conversation is going on suddenly like this after he said he had liked you for a long time and didn’t show any signs of it.”

“Worry? As my friend, shouldn’t you be worried about me marrying Tyrellius at this rate? Have you not seen him carrying a new girl from nowhere around his side?”

She said one thing because it seemed like it was going too fast in one night, but Ailene got angry. She also saw Tyrellius hanging out with a hot-looking lady, who didn’t look like a noble lady at all. Yes, Dozern must be better than that human.

“Calm down, Ailene. I heard the news for the first time today and I’m not used to it because it’s a wedding. It’s okay if you’re fine with it.”

She felt somewhat uncomfortable, but sheI agreed with Ailene’s words, who reacted violently.

“I’m going to get this marriage done quickly somehow. My servant is waiting, so I can’t talk about the long story right now. You said you will miss the banquet tomorrow, right?”

“Yeah. Now I have to study again.”

“You are also you. But next week, take some time off. Is there anyone else I can talk to openly besides you? A day or so is fine, right?”

“Yes, please. Contact me with a letter.”

Ailene fluttered like a butterfly and disappeared beyond the curtains, and she buried herself deeply in her chair, feeling somehow heavy.

Putting aside the question of whether it would be all right for Tyrellius to become king as he was, would Duke Nodovan agree to that marriage? Wouldn’t accepting it mean that he had made up his mind to change the crown prince, or that he would use it as a card to discard Ailene? While learning the long kingdom history, she discovered several common formulas, one of which was that among the princes who competed for the throne, the loser was always miserable in words.

She didn’t know, but she heard that the feud between the royal faction and the aristocratic faction was reaching its climax. In fact, since her family belonged to the royal faction, she had never met and talked with the aristocratic faction ladies. Even if they run into each other in that big hall, they pass by as if they were invisible, or they just fight with each other. Even the relationship between the ignorant young ladies was like that, but what should the head of the family who were fighting for talk about?

Still, the Duke won’t kick out his own daughter, right? If the relationship has deteriorated to that extent, they would not allow them to date. When she got back, she would have to do some research on the succession to the throne. Maybe she needed to have a more serious talk with Ailene.

Her friend chose the 2nd prince. But had he longed for her? Other than that, when they danced yesterday, she didn’t see anything special in the way Ailene treated him. Rather, didn’t he just look at Ailene’s back as she turned around after dancing? Was that an expression of long-hidden love?

She didn’t think his eyes were kind or sympathetic. Also, something wasn’t quite right. Well, they had agreed to meet again, so they could talk later.

Homer was standing there after she tidied up her hair and left the terrace.

“Lady Damian.”

“Did you wait for me, Homer? You should have said something.”

“I can’t interrupt a lady’s time.”

Even today, he smiled with his amber eyes. It’s like a big, gentle dog. How did he know she was there? Before she knew it, a dance song was flowing. It seems to have been in for quite some time. Homer smiled meekly and held out his hand, and she gladly took it.

“I hope you feel well today.”

“I’m worried because I’m too healthy today.”

They went out alone, walking together, and Homer wrapped his arms around her waist in a perfect position. As expected, Homer danced kindly as well.